Power-table



A. H. DE VOE.

POWER TABLE.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 19. 1916.

Patented Nov. 4, 1919.

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A. H. DE lOEi POWER TABLE.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 19. 1916.

Pat nted Nov. 4, 1919.

5 SHEETSSHEET 2- VENTOR i nroy' A. H. DE VOE.

POWER TABLE.

- APPLICATION FILED APR. 19, "91s.

Patented Nov. 4, 1919.

5 SHEETS -SHEET 3- WITNESSES.

THE COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH c0. WASIHNGTON, n. r.

A. H, D E VOE.

POWER TABLE.

APPLICATION FILED APR.19, 191s.

Patented Nov. 4, 1919.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

A. H. DE VOE.

POWER TABLE.

APPLICATION FILED APR.19,1916. 1,820,455., Patented Nov. 4, 1919.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 5- Jami L WITNESSES:

tinrr *sraas i Y ALBERT I-I. DE VOE, 0F 'WESTFIELD, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO- THE SINGER MANUFAC- TURING COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

POWER-TABLE.

Application filed April 19, 1916.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALBERT H. DE Von, a citizen of the United States, residing at W'estfield, in the county of Union and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Power Tables, of which the following is a specificatlon, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

This invention has for its object to provide a power-table particularly adapted for small light-running machines, such as sewing machines, which shall be inexpensive in construction, which shall have the requisite rigidity, which may be readily disassembled for shipment and as readily assembled for installation, and which shall provide effective means of support and easy adjustment in all requisitedirectmns for power-transmitters for driving the machines sustained by the table.

The present improvement is preferably embodied in either a single of a double power-table of the well-known Singer type, such as those of the United States patents, J. A. Reid, No. 678,978, of July 28, 1901, or H. Corrall, No. 1,147,877, of July 20, 1915, and is directed speciallyto a particularly advantageous construction of the frame-work sustaining the topboards which serve as supports for the machines to be driven. The tabletop is usually constructed in sections extending lengthwise of the power-shaft and comprises preferably two parallel series of end to-end top-boards with an intermediate space occupied by a flat tray or a trough to receive the finished or imfinished work.

In its preferred form, the table comprises two parallel series of top-boards arranged end-to-end with the joints between the boards of each series in substantial alinement with similar joints between the boards of the other series, supports being arranged at intervals between such joints and the ends of the extreme boards consisting of upright standards disposed inof the standards are preferably formed in their adjacent end portions with alined open-ended sockets entered by the opposite ends of connecting bars Wl11Cl1 are secured Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. a, 1919.

Serial No. 92,257.

adjustably in said sockets to thereby produce endwise adjustable transverse framemembers.

Secured upon the lower faces of the topboards adjacent their ends are reinforce plates which are preferably provided with reversely inclined and apertured seats upon which are seated the heads of fastening bolts passing through their apertures and similar apertures in correspondingly inclined seats formed upon the heads of the standards, upon which are seated nuts applied to said bolts for drawing the connected parts together independently of the connections between the reinforce plates and the top-boards. At the abutting ends of the top-boards the fastening bolts are oppositely inclined and in transverse relation with each other so as to draw the reinforce plates fiatwise upon the supporting faces of the standards and edgewise toward each other so as to form a rigid structure and avoid the production of open joints or seams between the abutted ends of the boards.

One of the reinforce plates of each adjacent pair is preferably provided with a segmental seat extending crosswise of the table to which is fitted the correspondingly shaped foot of a hanger having a similar and substantially vertical segmental seat to which is fitted the adjacent part of a power-transmitter frame containing rotary power-transmitting elements disposed concentrically with the longitudinally extending power-shaft with which one of said members has a driving connection.

The hanger is adj ustably secured upon the segmental seat of its respective reinforce plate, and the power-transmitting frame is similarly secured upon the segmental seat of the hanger by means of axially extending bolt-and-slot connections of such character I that the transmitter can be adjusted bodily toward and from and parallel with the face of the top-boards transversely of said shaft and also angularly upon axes both intersecting and parallel with the top-boards. Thus ample means are provided for readily and accurately lining up the power-shaft which is in practice supported at intervals by the table-frame by means of the powertransmitters to which it communicates the power for driving the machines upon the table.

The reinforce plates of the present improvement serve as battens to strengthen the top-boards and prevent warping and distortion; and they are so secured to the standards that the strains imposed in securing them firmly in position thereon are received only by the frame-members excepting in the endwise thrust of the abutted top-boards which is such as to close the joints between them and thereby exclude introduction of small objects, such as pins or needles, the projection of whose points would be liable to injure the hands of the operators. The mountin of the transmitter-frames upon the rein orce plates independently of the supporting standards permits of the described accurate alinement of the transmitters of a series and the power-shaft connecting them without the usual precision of installation of the standards, and allows of the initial erection of the table with its top properly leveled regardless of the lining up of the power-shaft and the transmitters, which may be more'easily performed thereafter without disturbing the larger and.

heavier parts of the structure.

The invention will be understood by reference to the accompanying drawings, in

their respective reinforce plates.

which Figure 1 is a side elevation of a part of a power-table installation, and Fig. 2 a view of the under side of the same with a portion of the intermediate work-supporting section removed. Fig. 3 is a view, partly in transverse section and upon an enlarged scalefshowing the head of one of the standards and its connection with the top-boards and also one of the transmitter-supporting hangers, and Fig. 4 is a sectional elevation of the same on the line 41 of Fig. 3. Fig. 1 is a sectional view showing the manner of securing a single reinforce plate to a standard at the end of a top board. Fig. 5 is a view ofthe under side of'the abutted ends of two top-boards with Fig. 6 is a top plan view of the head of one of the standards. Fig. 7 is an enlarged perspective view of one of the treadles for operating the power-transmitters.

As represented in the drawings, the tabletop comprises parallel series of end-to-end disposed machine-sustaining top-boards 1 which are rabbeted along their lower inner edges .to receive the edges of the intermediate work-supporting boards 2. To the lower faces of adjacent top-boards near their abutting ends are secured by fastening screws 3 the transverse reinforce-plates 4L and 5, respectively, slightly spaced apart, the plate 4 being somewhat wider than the latter. The adjacent marginal portions of the plates 4: and 5 are formed upon their lower faces with depending lugs 6 above and extending into which are cavities 7 laterally open at 8 at the side of said lugs beneath the plates and having downwardly and backwardly inclined bottoms 9 affording flat seats through which extend laterally open slots 10 communicating with the cavities 7 and passing entirely through the lugs 6. The lugs 6 of each plate are laterally offset with respect to those of the other plate, as

represented particularly in Fig. '5.

The wider reinforce-plate 1 is formed adjacent its edge opposite thelugs 6 with de pending seats comprising the lengthwise and crosswise spaced bearing faces 11 in segmental arrangement, those upon one side being inclined inwardly and upwardly reversely to those at the other side of each seat. Intermediate the similarly inclined bearing faces of each seat, an elongated aperture 12 is formed in the body of the plate beneath which is a depending lug 13 having a slot 14 open at one end whose edges overhang the aperture 12.

Each of the supporting standards for the table-top comprises a post 15 adapted to be secured to the floor by bolts 16 and having a flattened upper portion 17 formed with a vertical slot 18. Adjustably secured to the upper portion 17 of the post by bolts 19 passing through the slot 18 is the longitudinally aperturedshank 20 of the cross-member or head 21 of the standard which is provided at the upper side with oppositely extending spaced lugs 22 affording supporting faces to receive the depending ribs 6 of the reinforce-plates 4L- and 5 adjacent the lugs 6.

The lugs 22 are spaced apart sufficiently upon one side of the member 21 to embrace the lugs 6 of the plates 1 and 5, and upon the opposite side of such member are so spaced apart as to form an open slot 23 of substantially the width of the slots 10, and having their side faces downwardly and inwardly inclined to afford seats 24: corresponding in inclination with the seats 9 of the lugs '6 opposite the same. Passing through the registering slots 10 and 23 are clamp-bolts'25 having their heads 26 resting upon the seats 9 of the lugs 6 and provided upon their threaded opposite end portions with nuts 27 between which and the seats 24 of the lugs 22 are interposed the washers 28.

As the adjacent portions of seats 9 and 24 for the heads and nuts of the fastening bolts are inclined in opposite directions relatively to the line of division between the abutted ends of the top-boards, it will be observed that such bolts are disposed in crossed ar- The reinforce-plates having been previously secured to their respective top-boards and the component parts of the standards having been secured together, two abutting top-boards are placed upon the head of a standard with the bearing flanges 6 resting upon the supporting faces of the lugs 22. The fastening bolts 25 are then introduced, their heads 26 being passed through the lateral openings 8 of the lugs 6, after which the nuts and washers are applied. As the nuts are screwed up to draw the seats 9 toward the seats 24, the reinforce-plates 4 and 5 are forced toward each other upon and along the fiat supporting faces of the hearing lugs 22, thereby thrusting the ends of the top-boards against each other or against the interposed packing and serving to clamp all three members firmly together to produce a structure of the utmost rigidity. The construction is such that, after continued use in which the parts may work loose to some extent, any lost motion between them may be readily taken up by merely turning the nuts 27 so as to not only clamp the reinforce-plates more firmly upon the standards, but simultaneously draw the respective top-boards together to close the joint between them.

To secure the outer extremities of the end top-boards upon their respective standards, two of the narrower reinforce-plates 5 may be secured thereon with the edge of each adjacent that of the other, in the manner shown in Fig. 5, their lugs 6 being staggered in arrangement to receive the head 21' of the standard which is secured thereto by bolts 25 as previously described. In case it should be desired to use only a single plate 5, the head of the standard may be constructed as represented in Fig. 4 with the extremities of the lugs 22 at .one side preferably cut off and these lugs at the same time extended upwardly slightly to afford stop-shoulders 22 against which the edge of the reinforceplate is abutted by tightening 'of the bolts 25.

According to the present improvement, the reinforce-plates serve as battens to prevent the warping or other distortion of the top-boards to which they are secured, in addition to their function as elements of the fastening means by which the table-top is attached to the heads of the standards. As the clamping force is applied to such plates edgewise, there is no appreciable tendency to wrench them from the attached topboards, and the parts may therefore be clamped together with the necessary force without any liability to injury or disarrangement of the parts.

Each of the cross-members 21 is provided with an inwardly projecting extension 21 having a slightly raised seat 30 to sustain the marginal portion of the intermediate board 2 (Figs. 2 and 3) to which it is secured by fastening screws 31. The extension 21 is formed with an open-ended socket extending lengthwise thereof and divided into spaced sections 32 by transverse slots producing lateral recesses at intervals in the length of the socket to afford thrust-sustaining shoulders 33 in the member 21 below the bore of the socket. The member 21 is formed with clearance apertures 34 passing through the seats 33 in which are introduced the set-screws 35 externally screw-threaded to receive the nuts 36.

WVithin the sockets of the alined and transversely disposed top-board supporting members 21 of each pair are introduced the opposite ends of a tie-bar 37 which is adjustably secured in position by means of the setscrews 35 whose points bear upon said bar with their nuts bearing upon the thrustshoulders 33 (Fig. By the construction described, standards of a given size and pattern are adapted for tables of difierent widths, while the standards are readily packed in small compass for shipment and as readily assembled in installing the powertable.

Fitted upon the segmental seats 11 of the reinforce-plates 4 are the convergently inclined marginal portions 38 of the foot 39 of a depending hanger 40, the foot 39 being shown with flattened upper and lower faces and formed in the opposite ends with open slots 41 adapted to loosely embrace the shanks of clamp-bolts 42 passing through the slots 14 of the lugs 13 with their heads 43 disposed in the clearance apertures 12 and resting upon the marginal portions of the lugs 13. Nuts 44 are applied to the bolts 42 for clamping the foot 39 in position, the construction being such that the hanger may be laterally tilted slightly upon the axis of the segmental seat or may be adjusted bodily lengthwise of said axis.

The body portion of the hanger is provided in one face with vertical concave segmental seats 45 similar to the seats 11 of the reinforce-plates and with elongated apertures 46 intermediate the convergently disposed portions of such seats.

Each of the hangers 40 sustains a powertransmitter comprising operative rotary elements housed within a casing 47 which is formed upon one slde wlth segmental projections 48 fitted to the seats 45 to which (Fig. 7

said axis. The hanger thus provides both angular horizontal and bodily vertical adjustment for the rotating parts of the transmitter in respect of their axes of movement, while the described mounting of the hanger upon the reinforce-plate provides both angular vertical and bodily horizontal adjustment for such parts, the bodily adjustments being parallel to the respective axes of circular adjustment and transverse to each other.

As represented in the drawings, the transmitters are constructed each with a friction clutch-disk 51 secured upon the power-shaft 52 and in practice formed with a conical face engaging a corresponding cavity of the loose peripherally grooved belt-wheel 53 to which is connected the peripherally grooved belt- 'pulley 54 in a manner well known. The belt pulley 54: is embraced by a driving belt 55 extending through a slot 56 in the top-board 1 and surrounding the pulley 57 fixed to the balance-wheel 58 of one of the sewing machines 59 to be driven.

The clutch-member 51 may be pressed into operative engagement with the clutch-member 53 by any suitable or usual means, that represented herein being a bent lever 60 mounted upon the fulcrum-pin 61 sustained by the casing 47 'and carrying an inclined cam-plate 62 engaging a thrust-pin 63 which has a connection with the clutch-member 51. The lever 60 has rigidly connected therewith the brake-arm 64 which is in practice provided with a brake-shoe for arresting the motion of the brake-pulley 53. Each lever 60 is shown connected with the upper end of a sectional treadle-rod 65 having in its lower end a hook 66.

The transverse member of the hook 66 rests in a groove-67 formed in an upwardly extending lug 68 of a lateral car 69 formed upon the-treadle-plate 7 0 which is provided with the trunnions 71. The hook 66 at the lower end of the treadle-rod 65 is confined within its groove of the lug 68 by means of an arched heavy-wire clip 72 resting upon the top of the lug 63 and having its divergent limbs passed down through slots upon opposite sides of said lug in the ear 69 The trunnions 71 of the treadle-plate rest in transverse cavities 73 in the upper ends of the stands 7 4 having the feet 7 5 secured to the floor by means of screws 76. r The up wardly and convergently inclined edges of the stands 74.- are preferably formed with grooves 77, and the trunnion nearest the treadle-rod connection is preferably confined within its bearing cavity, by means of an inverted U-shaped clip 7 8 whose divergent limbs rest in the groove 77 of its respective stand 74, its extremities extending into the suitably elongated aperture for the head of the fastening screw 76 and turned outwardly for engagement by the under side of the screw-head whereby the clip is securely fastened in position. 7

From the foregoing description and the accompanying drawings, it will be observed that the frame-work of the power-table is machine work thereon; and hence their construction is comparatively inexpensive, although afiording means for very accurate adjustment, which is highly important to insure the perfect alinement of the powershaft from one to the other end of the power-table. The treadle device, which forms a part of the power-table outfit, is similarly adapted to employment of castings without special fitting.

l/Vhile the present improvement is shown and described herein in what is deemed the best and most advantageous embodiment, it is evident that it is susceptible of material modification within the scope of the invention to correspond with different conditions under which the table may be designed for use.

Having thus set forth the nature of the invention, what I claim herein is 1. A power-table comprising a standard provided with a supporting face, a topboard, a reinforce plate secured upon the face ofsaid board parallel with said supporting face of the standard, adjustable clamping means acting at an inclination to the supporting face of said standard to draw said plate edgewise and flatwise upon said standard, and means for receiving the edgewise thrust of said plate imposed by said clamping means.

2. A power-table comprising a standard provided with a supporting face and with apertured seats inclined thereto, a top-board, a reinforce plate secured upon the face of said board parallel with said supporting face of the standard and provided with apertured seats inclined correspondingly with those of said standard, and headed bolts fit-.

ted with nuts and entering the apertures of of said plate and the standard and having their heads and nuts in engagement with the respective seats.

3. A power-table comprising a standard provided with a supporting face, a plurality of topboards arranged end-to-end, reinforce plates secured upon the faces of and at the adjacent ends of said boards, and adjustable clamping means acting at an inclination to saidsupporting face of the standard to draw said plates edgewise toward each other and flatwise upon the supporting face of said standard.

4. A power-table comprising a standard provided with a supporting face, a plurality of top-boards arranged end-to-end, reinforce plates secured upon the faces of and at the adjacent ends of said boards, and bolts extending crosswise of each other and inclined to said supporting face of the standard and each acting to draw its respective reinforce plate upon and lengthwise of said supporting face to force the top-boards together endwise.

5. A power-table comprising a standard provided with a supporting face and with apertured seats inclined thereto in opposite directions, a plurality of top-boards arranged end-to-end, reinforce plates secured upon the faces of adjacent ends of said boards and provided with reversely inclined and apertured seats, and headed bolts fitted with nuts and entering the apertures of correspondingly inclined seats of said plates and standard and having their heads and nuts in engagement with the respective seats apertured to receive them.

6. A power-table comprising a top-board, a pair of standards spaced apart and disposed transversely thereof and provided with transversely arranged heads having supporting faces and open-ended sockets ex tending lengthwise thereof, reinforce plates secured to the face of said top-board and each resting upon and secured to the supporting face of one of said standards, and a connecting bar with its opposite ends entering the sockets of the heads of said standards in which it is adjustably secured.

7. A power-table comprising a top-board, a pair of standards spaced apart and disposed transversely thereof and provided with transversely arranged heads having open-ended sockets extending lengthwise thereof and formed with lateral recesses to afford thrust-shoulders exterior to the bore of said sockets, means for securing the heads of said standards to said top-board, a connecting bar with its opposite ends entering the sockets of the heads of said standards, and set-screws provided with nuts interposed between said bar and said thrustshoulders by means of which the bar is secured in position.

8. A power-table comprising a standard provided with a supporting face, a plurality of top-boards arranged end-to-end, battenplates secured upon the lower faces of and at adjacent ends of said boards, a plurality of tension members for securing contiguous batten-plates upon a supporting face of a standard, said plates and standard being shaped so that tightening of a tension member moves a plate both endwise and fiatwise to draw the ends of the top-boards together and hold them down.

9. In a power-table having a work-supporting portion, supporting leg members, one or more tie members for maintaining the leg members fixed in spaced relation, and means independent of said members for fixedly connecting them together comprising a pair of relatively rotatable wedge-like ele- 1igients arranged between parts of said memers.

10. In a power-table having a work supporting portion, supporting leg members, one or more tie members for maintaining certain of said leg members fixed in spaced relation, and means separate from said members for fixedly connecting them together comprising an interconnected nut and screw, one of which bears against a leg member and the other against a tie-member.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification.

ALBERT H. DE VOE.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. 0. 

